There are plenty of reasons to celebrate a fall Saturday in Auburn, but nothing compares to a home football game, especially when it's the first one of the season.
This Saturday, Aug. 31, marks the beginning of the Tigers' 2013 season, a day Auburn fans have been anticipating since the end of the last one.
"School's back in session," said senior Giancarlo Rivera. "That's how I know when it's time for football, when classes start again."
Rarely is there a larger outpouring of Auburn spirit and pride, as our small town welcomes back thousands of alumni and fans in time to begin the pre-game festivities.
"It's a madhouse," Rivera said. "The town triples, if not quadruples in size. It's packed, it's hard to move if you're already on campus, but there's nothing like it anywhere."
With campus nearly filled to the brim with fans decked in orange and blue on every square inch of grass, it wouldn't be a bad idea to plan your own Saturday ahead of schedule to make sure you don't miss the best parts that a game on the plains has to offer.
"I'd definitely start with a good tailgate," said senior Tony Perry. "Always start with a nice breakfast, any sort of homestyle cooking. Then work your way up; maybe play a little game of cornhole.
Then you have to go down to Toomer's and get some of the lemonade. It's always a game day must."
No trip to Jordan-Hare Stadium for game day would be complete without the Tiger Walk, the football team's traditional pre-game rally march down Donahue Drive and into the locker rooms.
"Before the game starts and during halftime it's like hanging out with all your friends, just having a really good day," said junior Grace Jolly. "I went to my first football game freshman year, and I've pretty much gone to every single home football game and one away game."
Minutes before the game starts, when the team is set to explode out of the tunnel and fans are already packed into Jordan-Hare, one of Auburn's most iconic traditions takes flight.
"Other than the game itself, I don't think anything comes close to the eagle flying around, it's second to none," Perry said.
"It gives me chills, like it legitimately gives me chills. Every single time," Jolly said.
"The eagle soaring is something that doesn't happen anywhere else, it's something that'll change you," Rivera said. "And when the football players come out of the smoke, there's nothing more exciting than that. It's the football game starting."
Despite the loss of the Toomer's Oaks, there will still be spots downtown to celebrate an Auburn victory.
The City of Auburn has installed wires around the intersection of College and Magnolia, ensuring that there is still a spot to end your game day on The Plains by rolling Toomer's Corner.
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